City Council OKs changes

BROUSSARD — The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to make two changes to its zoning ordinance.

The first change set forward clear guidelines requiring utilities and other companies to obtain council permission before they can run lateral facilities such as power lines, pipelines and conduits.

City environmental and zoning counsel Bob Boese said the move was necessary in the city because officials noticed neighboring communities had usable residential land blocked by power lines to the point that it was unusable or partially developed neighborhoods were hemmed in by lateral facilities.

“The purpose of this is to clarify the City Council will regulate lateral facilities through zoned properties,” he said. “If anyone wants to run a power line, they have to come here to get permission to do so.”

Boese said the city believed it already possessed this authority in the past, but did not and felt the action was necessary “to avoid (utilities or pipelines) being places that may impede the ability to build on a residential property.”

The second ordinance change affects the future construction of mobile/manufactured home parks.

The ordinance only affects parcels of land intended to house five or more units so family members could still build out their property without being affected by the new rule.

After the meeting, Boese said the city tried to make the new mobile home park ordinance “as family friendly as possible” for those wishing to put multiple mobile homes close together on family land.

But mobile home parks with more than five units will be required to provide streets, setbacks, entrances, parking, utilities and public space much like traditional neighborhoods.

Boese said the city took ordinances in place by Scott and Lafayette and tried to improve them to fit Broussard.

“All future mobile home parks must comply with these minimum requirements,” he said. “This will not affect existing mobile home parks in the city.”